Crime
Maria Bucci, a prominent Cranston Democrat, instead pleaded guilty to a Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal charge of refusing to submit to a chemical test.
Rhode Island prosecutors have dropped a drunk driving charge filed last month against a former Cranston mayoral candidate caught on camera taunting police and demanding, “You know who I am, right?”
Maria Bucci, 51, had her misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence of liquor dropped Tuesday after she pleaded guilty to a Rhode Island Traffic Tribunal charge of refusing to submit to a chemical test, court records show.
Bucci, who now serves as chairwoman of Cranston’s Democratic Committee, was sentenced to 20 hours of community service, a 30-day license suspension, and an alcohol education program. She was also ordered to pay more than $900 in fines and use an ignition interlock system for six months, records show.
Just one day earlier, Bucci had pleaded not guilty to the DUI charge during her arraignment. Reached by phone Friday, her attorney, Daniel Griffin, declined to comment.
The charges stem from a Dec. 18 traffic stop in East Greenwich, where a police officer reported seeing Bucci’s car swerve on Division Street. In body-worn camera footage of the arrest, Bucci argues with the officer as he tries to administer field sobriety tests, raising her voice and demanding, “What are you gonna do, shoot me? Are you gonna shoot me? What are you gonna do, arrest me?”
She also called the officer a “dick” and an “a—hole” and allegedly told him, “I told my kids if they ever became a cop, I’d kill ’em. Only clowns become a cop.”
Bucci did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. In an emailed statement to The Boston Globe, however, she said she takes “full responsibility for my actions and am deeply sorry.”
According to the Globe, Bucci apologized to family, friends, and colleagues and said she has personally apologized to the chief of the East Greenwich Police Department, adding: “I respect the work of law enforcement and the important role they play in our community.”
“I regret my actions that evening and hope that something positive can come from this experience — encouraging all of us to be mindful and responsible whenever we’re operating a motor vehicle,“ Bucci told the Globe. ”This has been a humbling experience. Moving forward, I am committed to acting with greater care, judgment, and respect, and to continuing my work in the community with integrity.”
Bucci, who previously served on the Cranston City Council, ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2020 and narrowly lost her bid for state representative in 2024.
Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
